Does Amtrak ever use Amfleet I and II cars on the same train? As I understand, Amfleet II are made for long distance trains and Amfleet I are for shorter distance routes.
Yes, quite often in fact.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amfleet
Additional interesting reading:
https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/36/921/2012-Amtrak-Fleet-Strategy-v3.1-%2003-29-12.pdf
This site offers general consists of Amtrak trains with photos:
http://trainweb.org/usarail/stationlist3.htm
Often, the Amfleet I space is sold as "Business Class" on some medium-distance trains and, of course, there are always instances where cars are substituted due to availability, holiday rush or are deadheaded for maintenance or "rebalancing" when too many cars accumulate in one region.
Once, when riding the Lakeshore Limited out of Cleveland, for Chicago, the conductor herded me and the other dozen boarding passengers into a packed Amfleet I. I politely asked if there was any other seating available and she asked if I was looking for a quieter, more comfortable ride. Umm, yes, that's the idea. Then, she led me into an empty Amfleet II that was being deadheaded and just the crew was occupying the first four seats. "Take your pick" she said... It pays to ask a friendly question to the crew now-and-then
Regards, Ed
Amfleet I & II mixed together happens very rarely. On my personal option I would say no.
Amfleet I- At one point it was supposedly be for long distances, but problems emerged. The trucks weren't made for fast speed. The car body construction was a little noisy.
Amfleet II- Long distances with better body construction and trucks.
Amtrak America, 1971-Present.
I can't say whether Amfleet I's were ever intended for long distance service, but it didn't take very long to determine that they weren't suitable for it. Their design was derived from that of the original Metroliners, which were intended to be used on the NEC. Amfleet II's have the same basic carbody and window arrangement, but they have fewer seats, a single larger restroom, and greater legroom. Use of the original carbody dictated that the seat locations would not always match the window locations. Amfleet II's also have one vestibule instead of the two that you will find on an Amfleet I. In my experience, Amfleet I's have occasionally been substituted for Amfleet II's on long distance trains, but only when no other equipment was available.
Both Amfleet I's and II's have high speed trucks and are frequently operated on the NEC at speeds well over 100 mph. The lead coach of the train that recently derailed near Philadelphia was an Amfleet I. When that accident occurred the train was operating at 106 mph, which was within the equipment's designed capability.
Tom
Metro Red Line Does Amtrak ever use Amfleet I and II cars on the same train? As I understand, Amfleet II are made for long distance trains and Amfleet I are for shorter distance routes.
Amtrak does indeed use Amfleet I and II cars in the same train and its fairly common on some trains.
Amtrak always has a great number of cars out of service for routine or emergency shop maintenance and this can cause a shortage of cars and they fill the gap with Amfleet I and II cars.
Do recall Amtrak operates on a tight budget so,they do what they have to do to fill train consist.
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
Last I saw the Pennsylvanian, it was running with a mix of Amfleet I and II cars.
watch?v=vK zq0E6GIc
Kevin
http://chatanuga.org/RailPage.html
http://chatanuga.org/WLMR.html
In the video, all boarding & detraining was at the rear cars, which were Amfleet I's. I'm speculating that the forward Amfleet II's were being used for the passengers who were going all the way from New York/Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, with the rear Amfleet I's being used for the "shorts".
ACY In the video, all boarding & detraining was at the rear cars, which were Amfleet I's. I'm speculating that the forward Amfleet II's were being used for the passengers who were going all the way from New York/Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, with the rear Amfleet I's being used for the "shorts". Tom
Back in 2003 and 2004 on my trips to Altoona and the Curve, they seemed to have the cars arranged about any way they wanted.
They have been running older streamlined baggage cars along with the Amfleet equipment on the Illini and Saluki (between Chicago and Carbondale IL) lately. I don't know why but for the last couple months they have been running three old baggage cars at the headend of these trains.
They are used to meet CN's axle requirements to operate at track speed over crossings. Those trains are basically the last trains to use them.